Judge denies request to block SAG talks with Hollywood studios

Union President Alan Rosenberg is hoping to overturn a board vote that ousted the guild's chief negotiator and disbanded its negotiating committee.

A state judge on Tuesday refused to issue a temporary restraining order sought by Screen Actors Guild President Alan Rosenberg to block talks between a newly constituted union negotiating team and the major studios.

Rosenberg and three other board members are seeking to overturn a board of directors vote last week that ousted the union's chief negotiator and disbanded the union's negotiating committee. They contend that the action violated the state's corporate code.

But Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge James Chalfant denied the request for an injunction, citing several errors in the lawsuit, but allowed them to amend the complaint.

"They are so desperate to hold on to their power that they are willing to burn down their own house," said New York SAG President Sam Freed, a board member being sued. Rosenberg declined to comment.